Denmark is often said to be the happiest country in the world. That’s down to one thing: hygge (pronounced HOO-GA)

You know hygge when you feel it. It is when you are cuddled up on a sofa with a loved one, or sharing comfort food with your closest friends. It is those crisp blue mornings when the light through your window is just right.

I liked this book because at the end of the day, I just love the cosier, quieter side of life and want to implement more hygge. This is a beautifully designed little book which talks about the benefits of coziness/homebodyness and good friends/good food as the way to happiness. The author of this book studies human happiness. He argues that Hygge contributes to the overall happiness and satisfaction of Danes. You get a glimpse into Danish life and their interesting accounts of what contributes to happiness.
We can all do with more Hygge. We can all do with more happiness.

Memorable Quotes:

“Hygge has been called everything from “the art of creating intimacy,” “coziness of the soul,” and “the absence of annoyance,” to “taking pleasure from the presence of soothing things,” “cozy togetherness,” and my personal favorite, “cocoa by candlelight”.

“We are social creatures, and the importance of this is clearly seen when one compares the satisfaction people feel in relationships with their overall satisfaction with life. The most important social relationships are close relationships in which you experience things together with others, and experience being understood; where you share thoughts and feelings, and both give and receive support. In one word: hygge.”

“Benjamin Franklin said it best: “Happiness consists more in small conveniences or pleasures that occur every day, than in great pieces of good fortune that happen but seldom.” .
“So, to all you introverts out there, do not feel embarrassed or boring for being a person who prefers things that are hygge.”

“Gratitude is more than just a simple “thank you” when you receive a gift. It is about keeping in mind that you live right now, allowing yourself to focus on the moment and appreciate the life you lead, to focus on all that you do have, not what you don’t. Cliches? Totally”

Funny, engaging and the research was interesting. Loved the audio version because of Aziz’s comedic timing. He discusses his mishaps with flirting via text, as well as worse transgressions, and how technology has changed courtship in this day and age. Kudos to him for taking what could have been a typical celeb memoir and actually turning it into something educational and enlightening.

I think non-singles will also benefit from reading it for the exploration of how technology affects our relationships.

Memorable Quotes:

“Marriage was an economic institution in which you were given a partnership for life in terms of children and social status and succession and companionship. But now we want our partner to still give us all these things, but in addition I want you to be my best friend and my trusted confidant and my passionate lover to boot, and we live twice as long. So we come to one person, and we basically are asking them to give us what once an entire village used to provide: Give me belonging, give me identity, give me continuity, but give me transcendence and mystery and awe all in one. Give me comfort, give me edge. Give me novelty, give me familiarity. Give me predictability, give me surprise. And we think it’s a given, and toys and lingerie are going to save us with that. Ideally, though, we’re lucky, and we find our soul mate and enjoy that life-changing mother lode of happiness. But a soul mate is a very hard thing to find.” .

“To be honest, I tend to romanticize the past, and though I appreciate all the conveniences of modern life, sometimes I yearn for simpler times.”

Read more…

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